


At The Rainbow's End

by ZaryaCoralCrystal



Series: Colors Of The Rainbow [3]
Category: Kingdom Hearts (Video Games)
Genre: Angst, Blood, Concussions, Drinking, I'm upset Kairi isn't there, Injury, Kidnapping, Multi, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Post-Kingdom Heart MoM, Post-Kingdom Hearts III, Rating May Change, Spoilers, Swearing, Technically..., Underage Drinking, but also some fluff, but oh well
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-16
Updated: 2021-02-20
Packaged: 2021-03-10 03:16:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 6,747
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27586645
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ZaryaCoralCrystal/pseuds/ZaryaCoralCrystal
Summary: Shortly after ending up in a strange world "on the other side of reality" Riku finds himself scouring unfamiliar lands for Sora. Each clue leaves him more and more worried for Sora, who despite everything, is still nowhere to be found.Until a set of dark claws rip through his back in the dark of night.
Relationships: Kairi/Riku/Sora (Kingdom Hearts), Riku/Sora (Kingdom Hearts)
Series: Colors Of The Rainbow [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2017598
Comments: 4
Kudos: 16





	1. The Other Side Of Reality

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! This is a little something I decided to work on in my free time. I can't really promise to know when it'll update, since I didn't plan this out at all, but it shouldn't be too long, so you shouldn't have to wait long for the rest of the chapters. There will be a couple of references to another work of mine called Following The Rainbow, but it isn't needed to understand the plot of this one.
> 
> Anyways, please enjoy!

When Riku woke up soaked on the hard concrete of the city, he was… almost giddy-if giddy was something one would ever use to describe him. He was finally getting close to finding Sora after so long with almost no progress, how else would he feel? He just wishes that Kairi could be with him as well. She was the only other person who missed Sora as much as he did, after all.

He quickly got his feet under him and started to scour the streets in an attempt to learn a bit more about what the area is like. It was full of people, all packed together while pushing past each other as the sounds of talking and cars honking all melded together into a deafening roar. It was more than enough to make Riku’s heart speed up, with anxiety pulsing in his chest at the thought of being completely surrounded and pressed into so many people he didn’t know.

Perhaps he was better off traveling via rooftops.

It was, in fact, a lot easier to travel when he didn’t have to walk at the same pace as the rest of the crowd, and even more so when he could get such a good view of the city. The lights made the already bright day even more so, and quickly pointed out different buildings via overly eye-catching signs, and made it easy for Riku to quickly figure out the layout of the city, so at least he would be able to get around should the need arise.

By the time he has that done, the sun has already moved from late morning to evening, with oranges and reds painting over the blue sky and white clouds that dot the sky. Only then does Riku realize that he doesn’t have a place to stay for the night. That was… an issue to say the least, even if he could normally get by with staying in a tree, or on some roof, he didn’t know what kind of threats were in this world. For all he knows, there might be creatures like the heartless that would attack him the second they got the chance. A chance he’d rather not take.

That leaves him with trying to find a hotel to stay in. There are several across the city that look like they might be within a reasonable price, and Riku chooses the one closest to the center of the city, near a strange looking building with four tower-like structures connected to it. The building seems like the type of place where something would happen, and at the very least, it makes it way easier for him to find his hotel.

The hotel itself doesn’t seem that impressive when he walks in. It's not run down, but it’s definitely not a place fit for royalty. Average. It’s also just slightly out of the way of the more crowded streets, perfect for avoiding the masses of people.

That, however, is where his luck seems to run out.

The lady working the front desk frowns when she sees him, looking vaguely worried. Prompting Riku to ask; “Excuse me, but are you alright?”

She looks slightly startled, her shoulders tensing just the slightest bit, and her eyes just a bit wider than they should be. “Ah, I’m fine, I just noticed that you look a lot like the prince. For a second I wondered if someone was trying to pull a prank on me again…” Her eyes stay off of Riku, adamantly avoiding him.

“The… prince?” Riku probes, hoping that the question wouldn’t draw too much attention to himself.

The woman sighs dejectedly. “Oh, I guess you are playing some trick. Please just get a room or leave. I really don’t want to deal with this right now.”

“Ah, how… how much for one room?” It seems that trying to ask the lady any questions may not be the best idea at the moment, and it’s getting too late to head to one of the other hotels if she kicks him out.

“Fifty-seven dollars per night. It has to be paid beforehand.” Dollars? Was that a term for a specific amount of munny? 

“How much munny is that?” Riku questions as he pulls out his munny pouch.

The woman gives him an odd look. “You… do know how to count money, yes? Actually, how old are you anyways? I would’ve figured that you were a young adult but if you don’t know that…”

“Of course I know how to count munny, I’m just… not familiar with the term dollars. They usually just say the exact amount and-”

“You’re talking about munny with a u, aren’t you, not money with an o.”

“Yes?” Was there a difference that he wasn’t seeing?

The woman gives the longest sigh Riku has ever heard as she begins to lean forward onto the desk, with her head leaning heavily into her hands. She stays like that for a long few seconds, just slowly breathing to herself, as if to calm herself down. Eventually, she moves her head to look at Riku with a face full of exhaustion.

“You were sent by those moogles, weren’t you?”

Riku blinks a couple of times before slowly replying. “Why do you say that?” If anyone were to say he took a few steps back from the murderous glare that was sent his way, well, anyone would in his position. The woman looks ready to kill as she slowly rises from her slumped position, her knuckles white from where she grasps the desk with vitriol. Her eyes bore deep into Riku’s soul.

“Tell me where those cheating bastards are and I’ll pay for your room.”

“Why?” Riku dares to ask despite the clear danger in the woman’s voice. He’d just come here to have a place to rest before looking for Sora again, not to end up in this woman’s war path.

“Because I care more about getting back at them then some fifty-something dollars, and I’m honestly interested in finding out why you only know their currency.”

“You are?”

“Yeah, I figure you probably aren’t from around here, considering that you don’t know what dollars are, but I don’t know any places that just use munny-with-a-u, and I wanna know so I can find those moogles.”

“You are very determined to get back at them, huh? Well, I need a place to stay while I look for my friend, so if I can get some help with that then I can help you.”

The woman grins, “Sounds great! I’ll pay for your room tonight and see if I can set up something more permanent for later, and once I’ve done that, you help me.”

Riku nods, and the woman laughs maniacally.

“I have a feeling that this is gonna be fun.”


	2. Rumors of The Park

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He dashes into the alleyway as fast as he can, and manages to spot a strange creature as it climbs the wall on the right, it’s claws digging into the brickwork without any resistance. The creature is hard to see, despite the sun slowly peeking above the horizon, and is too fast to get a good look at anyways before it disappears over the ledge of the building.
> 
> Riku gets his first lead.

The woman had introduced herself as she gave Riku the card to unlock his room, saying that her name was Balor, and that she had been working as an engineer at the most prestigious research center in Quadratum until one of the moogles took her spot by using some weird substances in his work. It caused his machines to work far smoother than anyone else’s in that division.

“But why did they fire you? Why not someone else?” Riku questions.

Balor sighs, looking off to the side as though remembering something unpleasant. “I wasn’t as well liked as the others in the division. I was known as the ‘weird’ one, who wasn’t great at socializing. I believe that’s how they actually justified themselves, saying that I ‘wasn’t a team player’ and ‘couldn’t properly communicate with my fellows’ which is only true when I was spoken over.” Her voice quickly trails off as she slightly shakes her head, grinning as she looks over at Riku. “Enough about me. How did you end up in Quadratum by yourself? You said you were looking for someone, right?”

Well, it shouldn’t hurt to get some help in this case, as long as he’s careful with what he says. “Yes, I’m looking for someone very close to me named Sora. He has spiky brown hair, ocean blue eyes, and is very optimistic, helping those around him no matter what it takes.” Fondness lines his voice, which does not go unnoticed by Balor

“Oh, me thinks someone has a crush,” she drawls with a cheeky look.

“I would hope so, since he’s my boyfriend,” Riku deadpans.

Balor’s grin just gets impossibly wider, looking downright ecstatic at the information. “That’s so cute! You’re looking for your lost love!” She’s soon mumbling to herself about ‘how cute kids are these days’ and how she ‘can’t believe that she just got a front row seat to a love movie’ among other things. Eventually she looks back at Riku. “I’ll hook you up with some of my contacts to help you find him, and also tell you if I personally find anything about him. I really hope this works out for you!”

Flustered, Riku leans back. “You’d help me? You didn’t seem too fond of me before…”

“Well of course! I thought you were trying to pull a prank on me before, but I can tell that your story is true, and I want to see what happens. Maybe I can even write a story based off of it if I’m lucky.”

Riku smiles sincerely. She seemed a bit all over the place, but also very nice. She really seems like she wants to help. “Thank you. Really”

“No problem. Why don’t you tell me a bit more about Sora, and I’ll tell you some places to look?”

“Sounds great.”

~~~~~

Balor had been somewhat suspicious when Riku had told her about the heartless, but mentioned that there was a park in the shadier part of the city where people had been seeing a strange creature that fit the dark with yellow eyes description. She noted that Sora may have heard about it as well, and that it may be a good idea to scout the place out to see if he would make his way there. And, well, even if he didn’t, it would be better to take the heartless out sooner rather than later.

The park itself is pretty unassuming, with the benches and trees typical of most parks. The flowers are a nice addition for sure, though. The park is still dark, as there is an hour or so until the sun rises, but Riku wants to see if he can find anything hiding behind those shadows. So far, there has been nothing of note; no heartless, nobodies, or anything else that would be strange for this world, and certainly no sign of Sora.

However, just as Riku is getting ready to leave, a strange sound from a nearby alley startles him. He dashes into the alleyway as fast as he can, and manages to spot a strange creature as it climbs the wall on the right, it’s claws digging into the brickwork without any resistance. The creature is hard to see, despite the sun slowly peeking above the horizon, and is too fast to get a good look at anyways before it disappears over the ledge of the building. Riku normally would go after it, but by the time he himself gets to the roof, the creature is long gone. Leaving Riku to stand alone in the drifting breeze as he questions what he just saw.

~~~~~

“Yeah, that seems to fit the description.” Balor leans back in the chair at her desk as she talks to Riku via call. “You said it didn’t look like a heartless type you’ve seen though?”

“Not really. It was covered in darkness, and had glowing yellow eyes, but I couldn’t see much else than that.”

“Hmm, well, I’ll see if I can set up some cameras around the park, get some footage of it. I’ll also make a tracker for you to use on it if you come across it again, alright?”

“Thanks. Do you have any other leads for me to check?”

Balor quickly pulls up a document of different leads-all of which she organized via location-and looks over the rumors near the park. “There’s one near you, it has to do with one of the prince’s pretty boys. I think his name is Aegis. He knows just about everything that goes on in his area of the city, so he should be able to help you look for your boyfriend. That being said, you’re probably going to have trouble getting in, since you need an ID to get in.”

“ID?” Seriously, how does this kid not know what an ID is?

“It’s basically proof of who you are. It shows how old you are and stuff like that. You’d need one that lists you as an adult instead of a teen.”

“I… am an adult though.” Well. She shouldn’t be too surprised, since he didn’t exactly look like a kid, but like, is he seriously twenty? Or is he just legal age based on wherever he’s from?

“Hey, about that, what’s the legal age for where you’re from? And how old are you?”

“Seven-teen, but I’m eight-teen. Is it different here?”

“Yeah, legal age here is twenty.” It’s easy to hear Riku sputter on the other side of the line, making it a struggle to keep in a snicker. She still allows a smile to grace her face though. “Yeah, I would have someone make a fake ID for you, but that’s a bit too illegal for me, and I don’t really know anyone who could. Sorry ‘bout that.”

“N-no, it’s fine. Is there another way I can get in?”

“You could always sneak in through a window. They only check at the entrance and when you go to get a drink, so as long as you act natural, you should be fine. On the off chance you get caught, just run. It would be too much effort for them to chase down one kid, so don’t worry about that.”

“All right, I’ll try that. When will Aegis be there?”

“Well, him and the other boy toys-” She hears Riku choke. “Are actually in Quadratum today, so you’ll be able to find him there…” Well, it’s eight-something in the morning, and he likes helping with lunch rush, “Probably around one-ish. In the afternoon. If not then, then let me deal with it.”

“Got it. Anything I should do in the meantime?”

“Rest? Eat? I don’t think it would be a good idea to go after any other leads when you’re planning on heading over there. Would be a shame if you missed him because you got side-tracked. I can give you some good places to eat at for right now.”

There’s a sigh on the other side of the line. “Sounds fine, but, I already have a place in mind to eat.” She swears that she hears something about cats. “I’ll talk to you later.”

“See you!” She ends the call, sighing with exasperation as she sets the phone down. She really is helping a kid with vaguely illegal things, huh? Well, it’s not the worst thing she’s done.

The computer in front of her finally finishes with the program she was using, and pulls up several files involving strange occurrences from as long as the government has been around. From strange shadows and black cloaked figures, to glowing keys and people claiming to be ‘from far away’ as a way to explain their strange appearances. Certainly fiction to most, yet the government still decided to lock the information away behind a surprising amount of digital locks. Balor pops her fingers and takes a deep breath, letting it out slowly.

Not the worst thing she’s done, but still pretty damn close.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know I've done a lot with Balor despite her not being the focus of the story, but we already know Riku's backstory, and I want to set stuff up with Balor in case I decide to use it. That's probably how it's going to be for a bit longer, since there are other stories that will be added to the series.
> 
> That aside, please enjoy! Comments are always nice, even if you just say 'cool' or something.


	3. Rumors of A Man

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A loud cheer sounds out from some of the guests waiting outside, seemingly towards a man with red hair and a black hat that had an almost smug grin on his face. A couple of the group call him Aegis, which makes this perhaps the easiest time Riku has had when it comes to finding someone. 
> 
> Riku talks to Aegis and ends up in a different situation than what he was expecting.

The cat cafe Riku had ended up in is nice to be sure, even if the twins working there have eyes that are a bit too close to a familiar gold for his comfort. He figures it may just be best to avoid them and talk to the one with blue eyes to get a seat.

He quickly ends up with a cat on his lap after sitting down, one that seems completely fine with just harassing him with it’s innocent eyes until Riku finally buys a treat for it. It then goes on to refuse any affection unless specifically asked for, biting Riku if he dares to attempt otherwise. All in all, the cat is kind of a brat.

“I see that Missy chose you as her royal throne today.” A mostly monotone voice draws Riku’s attention to his right, where one of the twins-this one with blue hair-looks at him with a slightly tilted head. One of the ones he wanted to avoid. Of course.

“Ah, her name is Missy?” Either way, Riku can’t let her eyes bother him too much. Can’t be rude.

“Yes, mostly because of my sister. She said one of the patrons called her that and it stuck.” She glances off to the side for a moment with a pause. “Anyways, what would you like? Other than treats for the brat of course.”

He huffs a quick laugh. “I’ll take the pancakes. It’s been awhile since I’ve had something sweet. Then some black tea to go with it.” He carefully avoids looking her in the eyes by staring at the menu.

“Alright sir, I’ll have that right out for you.” She walks off quietly, still without any change in her expression.

Missy purrs as she rubs herself against Riku’s shirt, looking up at him with wide eyes. She gives a sad mewl when it doesn’t immediately crack him.

The blue-eyed waitress laughs as she passes by. “Another treat for Missy I assume?”

“...Yes.”

~~~~~

As it gets closer to the afternoon, Riku starts to scope out the club that Balor mentioned to him. It was expensive looking, with a sleek look afforded to it by the tinted windows. The tint made it a bit hard to see if there was anyone near where he was planning to sneak in, but Riku could work with it. A distraction would probably help though. 

Riku waits a moment to see if the universe would try to turn that wish against him by summoning a swarm of heartless, or by having something attack him, but somehow it doesn’t.

A loud cheer sounds out from some of the guests waiting outside, seemingly towards a man with red hair and a black hat that had an almost smug grin on his face. A couple of the group call him Aegis, which makes this perhaps the easiest time Riku has had when it comes to finding someone. Of course, to be able to properly talk to him… Well, why couldn’t he just go down there right now? There wasn’t anything stopping him.

“Excuse me, you’re Aegis, right?” He easily gets through the small crowd to get to the man himself.

“Indeed I am! Who might you be?” 

“I wanted to ask you a few things, if that would be alright? It’s based on a few rumors that have been going around.” Aegis’ eyes shine with interest as he hears this.

“Well of course, I can never say no to another who seeks knowledge. All I ask is that I get the chance to pick your brain as we chat.”

“Of course.”

Grining, Aegis leads Riku in through the front entrance, waving away the security that gives Riku curious glances. He finds a small booth for the two of them to sit at as he orders himself an aperol spritz. “It’s a fine drink for this early in the day.” He comments as Riku looks over the startling number of drinks to choose from.

“I guess I’ll get myself the matcha hai.” He’s not entirely sure what it is, but at least he knows what matcha is.

“Wonderful!” He nods to the waitress who smiles and saunters off before looking back to Riku. “So, what did you want to ask me?”

“I wanted to know if you have heard anything about someone named Sora.”

Aegis raises an eyebrow as he tilts his head slightly to the side. “Oh? What would this Sora look like?”

Does he know something? “He has spiky brown hair, blue eyes, and is around 5’2. He’s also very optimistic and ready to help.”

“He sounds like a nice kid. Also quite familiar. Now where have I heard about someone like that…?”

“You know him?” Riku leans forward slightly with wide eyes.

Humming for a moment, Aegis looks lost in thought. “Perhaps… If I hear more about him then I’ll remember.”

“Of course. He and I used to live on some islands far away from here and play with a girl named Kairi. However, our islands-” A pause. “...We were forced to leave due to being attacked. We each ended up on different paths for a while after that, only occasionally meeting up with each other when those paths came together.”

“Oh? Is that why you’re searching for him?”

“No, it’s because he disappeared after defeating the ones who attacked us. We’ve been looking for him since.”

“Hmm. Well, now that I think about it, he does sound familiar.”

“Really?”

“Yes! In fact, I believe that my buddy Yozora met someone like him not too long ago. We could always go talk to him if you’d like…?”

The waitress from before comes back to set their drinks down as Riku nods with determination in his eyes. He might finally be able to find Sora. He and Kairi might be able to finally have their third piece back. Maybe then this entire mess can finally be over.

Aegis grins. “Well, I’ll let him know that we’ll be over.” Quickly he pulls out his phone, seeming almost excited. Yet there also seems to be some type of tension in his shoulders. With a few quick taps on his phone and a buzz a few moments later, Aegis shows a bit of surprise.

“Lucky you! Yozora is actually free tonight. We’ll be able to go see him in a few hours.”

“Great. Where will we be meeting him?”

Aegis just laughs before sipping at his drink.

~~~~~

In front of Riku is a… fairly imposing building. It has nothing on Castle Oblivion, but that doesn’t change the aura the place gives off, that this place is meant for people in high places. 

Well, Yozora is a prince, so it shouldn’t be a surprise.

As Aegis leads him in, he talks about some adventure where Yozora had ended up covered in mud while chasing a chocobo that had taken the book he had been reading. “The prince has always been so serious, which just makes it all the better when he ends up in those situations. The shock on his face was priceless!”

Riku gives a small laugh despite the distraction of the very, very expensive looking lobby of the building. It put Radiant Garden to shame, to say the least.

“Welcome! Not many get the chance to be here. I suppose you could say that you’re quite the lucky one.” He has a thin smile on his face, very off from the rest of his posture. Maybe it’s because there are so few people here? Is that not normal? Actually, a lot of them seem off as well…

Riku’s eyes widen as he realizes the full extent of the situation. He looks around just in time to avoid a chokehold from someone who had a rag of some sort. Shit! Why try to kidnap him here? The rest of the people in the lobby quickly join in to try to subdue him. A small flick of his wrist summons his keyblade as he shoots a dark firaga at his attackers. It causes more than a few to stumble back, but too many are still coming for him. He needs to get out and find Balor. Maybe she knows why they’re after him?

Riku pulls on his magic again to vanish, slipping past his enemies. Just as he’s about to make it to the door though, a figure in a black cloak appears.

“Sorry kid, but I need you to stay here.” Before Riku can blink, a sharp pain sparks though his head, and everything gets blurry. From behind him, someone grabs his hands and binds him, catching him as he starts to collapse. The world spins and darkens, making Riku nauseous, until finally, he slips into sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hehehe! So, funny story about this, I wasn't sure if I wanted to have Riku get kidnapped or attacked, but my friend told me to go with kidnapping, so blame him for this! I had some issues about being able to actually write this chapter since I didn't actually have my computer, and I'm not sure when I'll be able to post the next chapter, but at the very least, it'll be within a week or two.
> 
> Anyways, feel free to comment, even if it's just to say; "Oh no!"


	4. Taking A Fall

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The ground rushes to meet him, and it’s all Riku can do to throw some weak snow to maybe cushion his fall before-
> 
> Riku does not have a good time, but at the very least things might start looking up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wasn’t going to post this yet, but there was something else I couldn’t do until this was posted, sooooo... you get this chapter very, very early! In return, the next chapter may take awhile.
> 
> Anyways, enjoy! And comments are always appreciated, even if it’s just to say “Good evening!”

The first thing Riku feels as he comes to is a throbbing pain in his head that has him pressing his palm to his forehead. Everything feels fuzzy, as though he is swaddled in blankets. Maybe he is with how hot it is. Around him the world slowly begins to focus a bit more despite the spinning making him feel slightly sick. Why does everything feel so awful…?

With the twirling gradually going back to levels that he can handle, Riku can finally take in a bit about the world around him. He was in a small room of sorts that holds only the bed he’s on, a desk with a chair, and a door that leads to a bathroom upon further inspection. There’s another door next to a barred window that seems to act as a way for people to give things to him like food. The door itself is made out of what seems like metal, with no discernable handle to open it. Why…?

Is this a jail cell? It’s nicer than any cell Riku has ever seen before, but the bars on the windows and the heavy door make it clear that it’s meant to keep someone in. How did he even end up here? Was he caught trying to sneak into that nightclub?

The pounding in his head gets worse for a moment as he tries to remember, and so he sinks back onto the bed while holding his head in his hands. His thoughts swirl through the pain as he tries to sort himself out. His stomach starts to churn, and he barely manages to make it to the bathroom before the hot sour bile rises up his throat. He retches for a while, and dry heaves for longer until he hears the door open.

A man with red hair who looks familiar looks down at him. “My, that hit to your head certainly didn’t do you any good, hm?”

“W-Who…?”

“Do you not remember me? That’s… concerning. I’ll have to go grab the doctor. I’ll be back shortly.” He swiftly makes his way out of the bathroom and into the hallway, leaving Riku to his pain again.

But Riku doesn’t have time to wait for a doctor, he can rest when Sora’s… awake? Right, hadn’t he been asleep? No, Kairi was, wasn’t she? He needs to find them and make sure that they’re all right. He makes it to his feet with very little coordination, nearly slamming his side into the wall before catching himself. For a moment he stays still as he waits for the world to fell a bit more solid. 

Right, take a moment, then take a step forward, then another, and another. Then you're walking, and going to running from there won’t be hard at all. With more concentration than normal, Riku summons his keyblade and unlocks the heavy cell door, which luckily isn’t as heavy as it seems when he goes to open it. He makes himself vanish, despite the use of magic immediately making him want to collapse. From there, he avoids a few guards and makes it to a window where he can see a roof to jump to. Just jump over. He’s already walking, so it can’t be that hard from there. 

He misses the jump.

The ground rushes to meet him, and it’s all Riku can do to throw some weak snow to maybe cushion his fall before-

~~~~~

“Oh my gods! What happened to him?”

“I am unsure, but it seems like he’s probably being chased by the guards.”

“Then we should take him to Nyx. She won’t say anything.” Something warm wraps around him.

“We’ll need to take the sewers to get there undetected.”

“...Dang it.”

~~~~~

The next time Riku emerges from unconsciousness, his head hurts far less than it had before. Though unfortunately the world still isn’t as stable as he would like it to be. Honestly, that isn’t even his biggest concern at the moment, as he notices himself in another unfamiliar room. 

“I’ve got to stop getting knocked out.” Which really should be easy, but not recently it seems.

The room itself looks cozy and lived in, with photos lining any available wall and soft lights making them visible without hurting his head. The walls themselves are painted with a myriad of blacks and greens, giving the feeling of being in a grassy field at night, and the only window of the room is covered by dark curtains that let only a small bit of light peak through. It is… relaxing. Even more so once he notices that the door to the room is slightly creaked open, making it feel less like a cell and more like a home.

Said door starts to open just a bit with green eyes lighting up when they lock on Riku. A lady with long hair in twintails walks through, smiling softly with a hint of concern. “I’m glad to see you awake at last. You gave my friends quite a fright when they found you injured.”

She seems nice, at the very least. “Who are you?”

“My, how rude of me. I’m Nyx. My friends brought you to me in hopes that I would be able to help. I happen to be quite handy with magic, thankfully.” She tilts her head as she beams happily.

“Oh, you healed me? Thank you. I’m Riku.”

“Oh yes! I remember seeing you at the cafe. How did you end up hurt, if you don’t mind my asking?”

Riku looks away, still not entirely sure himself, even if a few things fit into place. “I’m not entirely sure myself.”

Nyx’s smile falls. “I see… Why not start with the first clear thing you remember?”

“I was talking to Aegis at his nightclub. I’d wanted to know if he knew anything about my friend. He said that Yozora probably would and… I think we went over there? I think we may have been attacked on the way there.”

“How horrible… I’ll see if my friend can check up on him. In the meantime, why don’t you rest?” She pulls a few things out of a drawer, including a full tea set that didn’t look like it should be able to fit in there. “I have some chamomile tea to help you relax, and some lavender incense to help if you need it.”

“Oh, thank you, but I need to get going.”

Nyx spins around, her face stern and worried. “You were severely concussed with multiple breaks just yesterday, and while my magic is quite strong, your mind needs time to catch up to those injuries. You may feel fine now, but the moment you go out into any bright light or hear any loud sounds your head will start to hurt again with a vengeance.”

“I know, but I can rest and talk to Balor at the same time. I’ve gotten too close to finding Sora to give up now.”

Nyx freezes at that. “Your… friend’s name is Sora?”

“Do you know him?”

“It depends. My friend ended up meeting a boy with chestnut hair who had come by the cafe. Apparently his name was Sora. The only reason she remembered that conversation was because of the strange phone he had. I believe she said it had a crown?”

Riku felt faint. Someone had actually seen Sora. He’s so close. All this time… “Can I talk to her?”

She nods slowly. “Yes, though she can be a bit loud, just warning you.”

“That’s fine. It’s nothing I’m not used to.”

Nyx gives a tired smile at that, shaking her head with exasperation as she walks out of the room while promising to be back in a moment. It gives Riku a chance to be alone with his thoughts at least. How long ago had she seen him? Maybe she knows where he was heading? Maybe-

“I was called?” A voice that is clearly trying to be quiet, but not doing so well comes from the doorway as… one of the waitresses from the cafe comes in. One of the ones with yellow eyes.

“Yes, I was hoping to hear about Sora?” She tilts her head at that, clearly a bit confused, but smiles a moment after.

“Oh, right!” She grimaces when she sees him wince. “Sorry,” she say much softer. “What would you like to know?”

Riku looks her in the eyes despite the discomfort. “Anything you can tell me.” 

Maybe he’ll finally get his answers.


	5. Not Exactly To A Tea

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some questions are answered, but more take their place. Though really, Riku should expect that by now. When does anything make sense in a world of fiction?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is a bit more comedic, and also a bit shorter since I'm pressed for time. As such, the quality may have suffered a bit. Oh well, I'll be posting something to go with this later anyways!
> 
> As always, hope you enjoy, and feel free to comment, even if it's just to say "OwO"

“When did you see Sora?” Riku starts off, hoping that it hadn’t been too long ago.

“Hmm, probably a month or so ago? Yeah, because we had been selling our cutie pies special that day.” A month? That was longer than Riku had been hoping.

“I see… Do you know where he was heading?”

“Well, he didn’t mention it to me, but he was mumbling to himself about looking for Yozora, oddly enough.” Ah, right, hadn’t that been part of him and Aegis’ conversation before they were attacked? He says as much to the girl.

Summer blinks. “Huh… At least you have a lead then. Sorry I can’t be of much help, it’s just hard for me to remember who comes through the cafe, especially with the guards all agitated.” 

“What do you mean?”

She gives a bit of a sigh. “Well, a lot of weird things have been happening as of late. Like strange creatures with yellow eyes popping up. My sister and I have been working less hours because people have been accusing us of working with those creatures. Nothing concrete of course, but yellow eyes are almost nonexistent, so…” 

Oh, so there are heartless here? Why hasn’t he seen any? “I see, I’m sorry to hear that, but can you tell me a bit more about those creatures? I might be able to help.”

“Really?” Her eyes light up at his nod. “That would be wonderful! So, I’m not sure if you’ve already heard about the creature that shows up in the park-actually, have you?” Riku nods again. “Alright, well that was the first creature people would see, but there have been more recently. Mostly around the sketchy areas where there are drug deals and such. Don’t know much beyond that though.”

“Thank you, I’ll go investigate it.” 

“I should be the one thanking you. The faster this is over, the better.” Summer startles a moment later, pulling something out of her phone pocket that Riku recognizes as his phone.

“Why do you have my phone…?”

“O-Oh! I saw it and figured you’d want it back. I kind of forgot it for a moment though.” She glances at the screen. “It looks like someone named Balor is calling you.”

Oh, right, he never checked in after getting to the nightclub. He should probably tell her that he’s alright. He grabs the phone after Summer hands it out to him, and answers while putting it on speaker.

“Oh thank the gods you finally answered.” She sounds relieved but tired. How long had she been looking for him?

“Hey Balor, I just ran into a bit of trouble and-”

“A bit of trouble? You fell off the grid for almost three days Riku! You go and get yourself kidnapped or something?” Balor’s relief quickly turns to anger the more he hears her talk. Summer, who hadn’t left, stands awkwardly to the side, not sure what to do while a near stranger is being yelled at.

“Funny story, I don’t really remember what happened to me. I apparently had a really bad concussion due to being attacked.” Not the best way to word that, but maybe she’d appreciate the bit of humor he put in?

Nope. “For the love of sane thinking and common sense, you better not be in a prison cell right now.” Riku rubs his temples as his head starts throbbing again. Balor can be loud.

Summer cuts in, face somewhat sheepish and nervous. “Uh, ma’am, Riku is at my friend’s house. She healed his concussion and he’s resting right now, so perhaps my friend can talk to you?”

Only the sound of tapping comes through the phone for a moment before Balor sighs. “That’s fine, he seems alright now.” Seemingly forgetting that Balor can’t see her, Summer nods and takes the phone outside, coming back in a moment later without it. 

“Alright, so, you want anything to eat? I’m a decent enough cook now, so I should be able to make a few dishes without trouble.”

“Sounds great.”

“Got it! I’ll have to make something with… wasn’t it good to have magnesium rich-foods after a concussion?” She mumbles to herself and seems to remember something as she grabs a packet of some sort from a drawer while moving to the forgotten tea set that Nyx had brought out. “When my sister heard what happened, she told me about her encounter with you at the cafe, said you’d ordered black tea. I can make some more for you to drink while I work on making some food.”

“I can make the tea, you’re already making a whole meal for me.” He also doesn’t know what is in the packet, since it doesn’t look like any tea bag he’s seen. “It’ll give me something to do and take less time overall.”

She huffs a bit with a pout, murmuring something along the lines of “It’s bad manners to let the guest who’s still recovering make stuff,” but relinquishes the tea set. 

“Just to let you know,” Summer starts as she steps back to give more room for Riku. “The packet is B2 powder. It’s another supplement that helps with concussions like magnesium does. Black tea already has a pretty good amount of it though, so only add about a fourth of it. Alright?”

“Alright.”

Summer grins and heads out the bedroom door, letting Riku get back to the tea-making process.

The tea set is one of the nicer ones that Riku has seen, which is somewhat surprising since he’s had tea with Mickey before with a set from the castle. The set itself is mostly black, with gold accents. There are bits of green in different colors that wrap around each piece like vines, with yellow flowers. The insides look like the night sky, glimmering very similarly. An enchantment of some kind? It doesn’t seem natural, that’s for sure.

Really, a lot of this room doesn’t seem natural, not to this world. He only notices now, but the room is filled with magic that he’s never felt before despite his many trips to other worlds. He hasn’t seen anything like it here either…

It hits him then, he’s seen that cat cafe before, back in San Fransokyo, in Arendelle, and even as an… interesting tavern in Port Royal as he was looking for Sora.

They aren’t keyblade wielders, but they have been to other worlds, so in that case, why don’t they recognize the heartless?

Maybe… maybe they do, but pretended not to? In that case, what else are they hiding?


	6. Announcement-NOT A CHAPTER

Alright, so I know it's been awhile since I've posted, and there are a few reasons for that. The first one is that this was meant for me to get my ideas together for an actual story, which is part of why it's very rough around the edges. Now that I have what I need, I can actually start on the real version of this. The second reason is because I got in a car crash a little while ago, which kept me from posting this message... The final reason is just that I had a lot of school for a while, so, you know. That.

Anyways, I'll be working on the story for a bit before I post the first chapter. It'll be under the same name, as I'll be deleting what's on here now once that first chapter is posted. With that, I'll go and get started on the story, see you soon!!!


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